Colin Davis's interpretation of Handel's Messiah, given with the London Symphony Orchestra and the chamber choir Tenebrae, shows scarcely any impact of decades of period-instrument research. That might put it out of court for some, but it has compensations. Davis focuses on the alternate grandeur and simplicity of Handel's choral and orchestral gestures, and misses few dramatic tricks. It's arguably a viable alternative to more authentic Messiahs, if necessarily an old-fashioned one. The Handel revealed is surely the one Beethoven so admired.

In any case, there's more than one way to perform any great composer, and Davis's approach offers plenty of spirit, though less historically informed style. His soloists kept decorations to a minimum, but his choir was impeccable in its attack and lightness of texture. The sopranos rose confidently to every high note, and the 30-odd choristers achieved some particularly nifty vocal footwork in the fugues.

Of the four soloists, soprano Susan Gritton was all sweetness and light in her arias, while Italian contralto Sara Mingardo tripped up on her words only once when she added an unfortunate prefatory "s" to "pity". Mark Padmore gave his contributions an almost missionary zeal, his articulation of text placing him firmly within the finest English tenor traditions. Bass Alastair Miles was on matter-of-fact form, staring at his score as if he had never seen a copy of Messiah before, and delivering most of his solos to the floor.

The orchestral playing was spruce enough, though at times the substantial string tone sounded bland and under-characterised - something period groups manage to avoid. A few of the tempos were on the drowsy side, yet both the intimacy and the magnificence of Handel's vision came over, if only fitfully.

· Broadcast on BBC4 at 7pm on December 23.